Ayesha McGowan, Mary Shyne, Laura Solis and Casey Ashenhurst are among a group of 10 women cycling 300 miles to encourage a larger female presence at the National Bike Summit.

More than 700 participants from all 50 states will gather in Washington DC for the 2014 National Bike Summit held March 3-5 to unite the voices of bicyclists on Capitol Hill to advance bicycle safety, funding and equity:

To encourage more women to participate in this year’s summit, an intrepid band of 10 women from 5 cycling organizations (WE Bike NYC, the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Black Women Bike: DC, Gearing Up and the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia) will cycle 300 miles from New York City to the summit in Washington DC. They will be passing through Delaware on February 28 and March 1!

The idea for the ride came from last year’s Women’s Bicycling Forum. It is intended to raise awareness of the importance of bringing new voices into the bicycle advocacy conversation — especially women, but also people of color and people from disadvantaged backgrounds. Everyone can ride a bicycle but not everyone is equally represented in bicycling advocacy. This trip is one of our chances to bring new voices into the national cycling and transportation conversation.

Are you interested in being a local guide for #WEBiketoDC? Leave a comment below and we’ll put you in touch with them!